Budget Component of the Year
KEF Q350 loudspeaker ($649.99/pair; reviewed by Herb Reichert, March 2018, Vol.41 No.3 review)
Finalists (in alphabetical order)
Akitika GT-102 power amplifier ($488 assembled, $314 kit; reviewed by Herb Reichert, July 2018, Vol.41 No.7 review)
Apple HomePod smart speaker ($349; reviewed by Jim Austin, August & September 2018, Vol.41 Nos. 8 & 9 review)
Focal Elear headphones ($999; reviewed by Herb Reichert, June 2018, Vol.41 No.6 review)
Hana SL phono cartridge ($750; reviewed by Herb Reichert, October 2018, Vol.41 No.10 review)
JRiver Media Center, 64-bit version ($49.98, single platform; reviewed by Kal Rubinson, January 2018, Vol.41 No.1 review)
Koss PortaPro headphones ($49.95; reviewed by Herb Reichert, June 2018, Vol.41 No.6 review)
LG V30 MQA-compatible smartphone ($799; reviewed by Jason Victor Serinus, May & July 2018, Vol.41 Nos. 5 & 7 review)
miniDSP U-DAC8 D/A processor ($299; reviewed by Kal Rubinson, September 2016 & July 2018, Vol.38 No.9 & Vol.41 No.7 review)
MrSpeakers Æon headphones ($799.99; reviewed by John Atkinson, March 2018, Vol.41 No.3 review)
NAD C 328 integrated amplifier ($549; reviewed by Ken Micallef, October 2018, Vol.41 No.10 review)
Outlaw Audio RR2160 stereo receiver ($799; reviewed by Herb Reichert, December 2017, Vol.40 No.12 review)
Quad S-2 loudspeaker ($999/pair; reviewed by Ken Micallef, January 2018, Vol.41 No.1 review)
Rega Research Apollo CD player ($1095; reviewed by Art Dudley, June 2018, Vol.41 No.6 review)
Zu Audio DL-103 phono cartridge ($559–$999, depending on level; reviewed by Art Dudley, April 2018, Vol.41 No.4 review) In yet another runaway win, the Budget Component of the Year award went to the KEF Q350 loudspeaker, which is built around a larger version of the Uni-Q driver featured in KEF's smaller yet dearer LS50, itself voted Stereophile's Budget Product of the Year and Overall Product of the Year in 2013. Sounds like a tough act to follow, yet Herb Reichert singled out the Q350 for being not "the poor person's LS50," but rather a speaker with "unique goodness of its own." Notes on the Votes
Fully five first-place votes went to the Q350—three other Stereophile reviewers gave it second-place votes—earning for the KEF over twice as many points as the nearest contender. Second place went to the Hana SL phono cartridge, a Herb Reichert favorite, while the Quad S-2 stand-mounted speaker took third. Especially gratifying were the many Budget finalists that so impressed our reviewers that they were also finalists in their respective nonbudget categories: the KEF Q350 speaker, Hana SL and Zu Audio DL-103 phono cartridges, LG V30 smartphone, JRiver Media Center software, Rega Research Apollo CD player, and MrSpeakers Æon headphones.
Finalists (in alphabetical order)
Akitika GT-102 power amplifier ($488 assembled, $314 kit; reviewed by Herb Reichert, July 2018, Vol.41 No.7 review)Apple HomePod smart speaker ($349; reviewed by Jim Austin, August & September 2018, Vol.41 Nos. 8 & 9 review)
Focal Elear headphones ($999; reviewed by Herb Reichert, June 2018, Vol.41 No.6 review)
Hana SL phono cartridge ($750; reviewed by Herb Reichert, October 2018, Vol.41 No.10 review)
JRiver Media Center, 64-bit version ($49.98, single platform; reviewed by Kal Rubinson, January 2018, Vol.41 No.1 review)
Koss PortaPro headphones ($49.95; reviewed by Herb Reichert, June 2018, Vol.41 No.6 review)
LG V30 MQA-compatible smartphone ($799; reviewed by Jason Victor Serinus, May & July 2018, Vol.41 Nos. 5 & 7 review)
miniDSP U-DAC8 D/A processor ($299; reviewed by Kal Rubinson, September 2016 & July 2018, Vol.38 No.9 & Vol.41 No.7 review)
MrSpeakers Æon headphones ($799.99; reviewed by John Atkinson, March 2018, Vol.41 No.3 review)
NAD C 328 integrated amplifier ($549; reviewed by Ken Micallef, October 2018, Vol.41 No.10 review)
Outlaw Audio RR2160 stereo receiver ($799; reviewed by Herb Reichert, December 2017, Vol.40 No.12 review)
Quad S-2 loudspeaker ($999/pair; reviewed by Ken Micallef, January 2018, Vol.41 No.1 review)
Rega Research Apollo CD player ($1095; reviewed by Art Dudley, June 2018, Vol.41 No.6 review)
Zu Audio DL-103 phono cartridge ($559–$999, depending on level; reviewed by Art Dudley, April 2018, Vol.41 No.4 review) In yet another runaway win, the Budget Component of the Year award went to the KEF Q350 loudspeaker, which is built around a larger version of the Uni-Q driver featured in KEF's smaller yet dearer LS50, itself voted Stereophile's Budget Product of the Year and Overall Product of the Year in 2013. Sounds like a tough act to follow, yet Herb Reichert singled out the Q350 for being not "the poor person's LS50," but rather a speaker with "unique goodness of its own." Notes on the Votes
Fully five first-place votes went to the Q350—three other Stereophile reviewers gave it second-place votes—earning for the KEF over twice as many points as the nearest contender. Second place went to the Hana SL phono cartridge, a Herb Reichert favorite, while the Quad S-2 stand-mounted speaker took third. Especially gratifying were the many Budget finalists that so impressed our reviewers that they were also finalists in their respective nonbudget categories: the KEF Q350 speaker, Hana SL and Zu Audio DL-103 phono cartridges, LG V30 smartphone, JRiver Media Center software, Rega Research Apollo CD player, and MrSpeakers Æon headphones.
